Faith in Action: April 10, 2022 – End robbery lending in support of the Fair Credit for Veterans and Consumers Act

Each week at All Saints Church we put our faith into action. This week we are writing to our members of the United States Congress urging them to support the Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act to protect consumers from predatory lenders.

Scripture condemns usury and teaches us to respect the God-given dignity of every human being and to love our neighbors rather than take advantage of their financial vulnerability. Just lending is a matter of biblical morality and religious concern. 2012 General Assembly approved his commitment to reforming interest rates and usury laws to outlaw abusive and predatory lending practices.

Payday loans are expensive small loans, some of which have an APR of 300% or more. Borrowing these loans often creates a long-term cycle of debt. If borrowers keep renewing these loans, like them often If you do this, you will end up incurring and paying significantly more fees than the amount originally borrowed.

Predatory loans take advantage of individuals and families, who often need credit to pay bills, keep food on the table, save for the next emergency, or care for their children. In addition, payday lenders have targeted borrowers of color by concentrating their locations into communities of color, further exacerbating existing disparities.

After a Department of Defense report showed the devastation caused by military payday loans, Congress passed legislation to set an interest rate of 36% to protect active-duty military personnel and their families, which has been very successful. However, once a person leaves the military, those protections disappear, making veterans—who take out high-interest payday loans—even more vulnerable (see Texas and Nevada).

Members of Congress have introduced a bill that Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act, which would apply the military’s 36% interest rate cap to all consumers, including veterans, to mitigate and prevent the damage caused by predatory lending practices. 20 states and the District of Columbia have successful have capped their tax rates to 36% or less to protect individuals and families.

However, consumers must be protected nationwide from robbery loans. The Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act (S.2508/HR5974) would apply the military’s 36% interest rate cap to all consumers, including veterans, to mitigate and prevent the damage caused by predatory lending practices.

Options for action:

  1. Sign an action letter on Sunday morning at the action table in front of the church.
  2. Download a PDF copy of the Action Letter, sign it and send it to your members of Congress.
    Here is a PDF copy of the letter of action for those living outside of California.
  3. Click this link to Take action on the Episcopal Public Policy Network (EPPN) website.

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If you ever need to look up your US House of Representatives or US Senators, look here: www.house.gov and www.senate.gov.

How to find contact information for yOur California State Senator or California State Assemblyperson check here: www.senate.ca.gov and www.assembly.ca.gov.

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